Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by moulds and fungi contaminating cereal grains as well as forages, fruits, feed and food products as well as the environment (e.g., soil, water and air through aerosol acquired mycotoxicosis, etc.).
Mycotoxins may have dangerous effects on human and animal health. Of particular note are the trichothecene mycotoxins, which are a class of compounds produced by the species Fusarium graminearum. This large family of sesquiterpene epoxides are closely related and vary by the position and number of hydroxylations and substitutions of a basic chemical structure. The major trichothecene produced by Fusarium graminearum is deoxynivalenol (DON) also known as vomitoxin for its ability to induce vomiting. The impact of DON on nutrient absorption in human intestinal epithelial cells has been investigated in Maresca et al. “The mycotoxin deoxynivalenol affects nutrient absorption in human intestinal epithelial cells” J. Nutr. Vol. 132 (2002) 2723-2731, and in Avantaggiato et al. “Evaluation of the intestinal absorption of deoxynivalenol and nivalenol by an in vitro gastrointestinal model, and the binding efficacy of activated carbon and other absorbent materials” Food and Chemical Toxicology vol. 42 (2004) 817-824.
Mycotoxins can appear in the food chain as a result of fungal infection of plant products (e.g., forage, grain, plant protein, processed grain by-products, roughage and molasses products), and can either be eaten directly by humans, or introduced by contaminated grains, livestock or other animal feedstuff(s). Furthermore, mycotoxins greatly resist decomposition during digestion so they remain in the food chain in edible products (e.g., meat, fish, eggs and dairy products) or under the form of metabolites of the parent toxin ingested. Temperature treatments such as cooking and freezing are not adequate methods of decreasing the prevalence of mycotoxins.
Mycotoxin contamination is unavoidable, and in order to reduce the negative effects of mycotoxins, inorganic materials such as clays, bentonites and aluminosilicates, or activated charcoal, known for their adsorptive properties, were historically used in agriculture (e.g., admixed with animal feed and/or ingredients, encapsulated forms or as filter devices). Clays used in large quantities sequester some mycotoxins in fluids (e.g., in the gastrointestinal tract of the animal and/or humans) and minimize their toxic effects (See e.g., Ramos A. J., and Hernandez E., 1997. Animal Feed Science and Technology, 65: 197-206; Grant P. G., and Phillips T. D., 1998. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 46: 599-605). As a biotoxin sorbent for feed, US 2010/189871 discloses a combination of clay and yeast manna oligosacccharide (MOS) which is an extract of yeast cell wall separated from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The role of clay in US 2010/189871 is unmistakable.
However, clays hinder the absorption of many beneficial nutrients that are important to animals and humans such as vitamins, minerals and amino acids thereby decreasing the nutrient density of the diet. Moreover, clays are an inert material that must be used (e.g., fed to animals) in large quantities to have a beneficial effect (e.g., reduction of mycotoxin contamination). Furthermore, clays fed to animals in large quantities can have a negative effect on the environment when the clays are excreted from the animal. Other broad spectrum mycotoxin adsorbents, which lack specificity for specific mycotoxins, including the invention described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,045,834, have also been used.
WO 2011/037497 discloses veterinary pharmaceutical compositions comprising a hydrolyzed lignin and a prebiotic for treating diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and intoxications of diverse ethiology in poultry, and the list of diseases includes dyspepsia, gastroenteritis, enteritis, colitis, hepatitis and hepato-dystrophy.
Meissannier et al. “Dietary glucomannan improves the vaccinal response in pigs exposed to aflatroxin B1 or T-2 toxin” World Mycotoxin Journal Vol. 2, no. 2 (2009) 161-172 involves a study to investigate whether dietary supplementation with yeast-derived glucomannan protects pigs against the deleterious effects that exposure to aflatoxin B1 or T-2 toxin has on the vaccinal immune response and drug-metabolizing enzymes. As addressed in US 2010/189871, the limited water-solubility of glucomannans leads to its insufficient contact with mycotoxin and bad absorption effect to wide-spectrum moulds (mildew).
Awad et al. “A nutritional approach for the management of deoxynivalenol (DOM) toxicity in the gastrointestinal tract of growing chickens” Int. J. Mol. Sci. Vol. 9 (2008) 2505-2514 provides an in vitro study to evaluate the effect of inulin on the electrophysiological parameters in the presence and absence of the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol in the chicken gut. Insulins used in these studies are provided by Orafti and typically marketed having an average DP of higher than 10. While it finds the use of inulin offers a promising approach as shows improved glucose absorption in the presence of DON, it suggests further studies need to be done to extend its findings.
Thus, there exists a need for compositions and/or methods for reducing the detrimental effects and/or eliminating mycotoxin occurrence in feed and/or food chains, and/or at least to provide the public with a useful choice.